Hans' Redemption?
by yugifrozenfan
Summary: Set after Frozen & Frozen Fever, Elsa gets a letter from the Southern Isles claiming that Hans had changed and wants to come to Arendelle to try and make amends. However, two mysterious things begin occuring which may cast doubt whether or not Hans truly changed.


**AN: I'm back again with another Frozen fanfic (spent a LOT of time away from the fandom because I have exhausted most of all my ideas for stories). However, this one would be a Repentant!Hans fic but with a twist: Hans pays a visit to Arendelle, claiming he wants to be forgiven for his actions but strange things begin to occur and the question is: Is he the one behind them all? Frozen isn't owned by me.**

"This can NOT be happening!" Elsa said, crumpling the letter into her hands. What was happening was the following: The Southern Isles had contacted Elsa, stating that Hans had an epiphany while in prison and was now in regret for his actions during his previous visit and had filed an approval for his sentence to be lifted so that he could travel to Arendelle and make amends with the sisters but as Elsa was the one who dealt with the legalities regarding Hans' treachery and crimes, the Southern Isles' government approved the request but Elsa had to approve it as well. Needless to say, Hans was indeed a VERY skilled liar, having played all of Arendelle and Anna for fools, so it would be easier for him to feign repentance, travel to Arendelle WITHOUT supervision, mind you, and try his plot again. Needless to say, she was almost content to veto the request as to keep Hans in his kingdom because while she could have invoked her rights to try Hans under Arendelle law, it made sense to send him back for three reasons: 1. Arendelle would wash their hands of his crimes, 2. It could avoid a war between the two kingdoms, assuming Hans' brothers were ultimately just as bad and corrupt as he was and 3. She wouldn't have to choose his punishment. But now, he's claiming he's changed and wants to make amends? Not in his life! Elsa dug out her parchment and pen and ink and began to compose her response.

"Dear Sir Lucas of The Southern Isles,

I must start off by saying I received and read your letter and I must say I was surprised by its' content. However, It appears that you don't understand the severity of Hans' crimes. While what he did at the start of his regency seemed reasonable enough, what he DID in the end would techinally be considered a scandal in royalty in general. I say this within Arendelle's best interests and, most importance, in regards to my sister Anna's safety as she was emotionally manipulated by him, I have to decline Hans' request for a visitiation. I say that it's just too risky and too fishy for me for him to suddenly want to atone for his crimes when he could be trying a plan B. You will receive another letter if I reconsider but for now, that's where my decision stands.

Sincerely,

Queen Elsa of Arendelle."

Elsa sealed the letter and sent it by the royal letter keeper. That evening, after court was finished, she discussed the issue with Anna, who reacted far more typically in her opinon.

"They did WHAT?!"

"That's what the letter had said", Elsa said, trying to maintain a professional queenly demeaner.

"Elsa, you forget it was my idea to try him as a traitor for his crimes? And now he wants to come back here? I don't think so! Are his brothers just as bad as him?" Anna asked, worried about that idea.

"Probably not. Anna, either way, you don't have to worry about it. I told them no because they said that I, being the one who sent him back to begin with, had to approve it. I told them in the letter it just felt too suspicious for me and I also told them that I had to think about your and Arendelle's safety. I almost died a traitor because of him!" Elsa stated. Anna had told her about what Hans had said in the study, stating he was going to have Elsa killed to officially seize Arendelle but to cover his tracks, he, according to one of the royal officals who had testified at his Arendelle trial, had Elsa declared traitor instead to give them legal justification of executing her until Anna made the truth come out when she stopped the blade. "I gave him a fair trial, didn't I?" she asked.

"You did", Anna stated. But what she said next shocked Elsa. "Recant your earlier letter and approve his visitiation rights."

"What? Did I hear you correctly?"

"Elsa, you heard me right. Sure, what Hans did was wrong but I'm willing to give him a second chance. True, I have my suspicions as well but it's all the better to see if he's really reformed or not", Anna explained. Elsa considered what Anna had said and in fairness, what she did say actually holds merit: One time, when their father was alive, some guy, who was visiting, was caught stealing from a store front in the castle town. The guards had him arrested and their father had him sent back to his own kingdom to judge him, after giving him a trial, like with Hans, it was more a general gist of his crime and testimony for their kingdom's government to look over. Later on, the government contacted Arendelle's government, claiming the person had changed and wanted to return to the kingdom to apologize to the victim he had stole from. Their father approved the visit and the guy was sent back, with miminal supervision but he was eventually caught stealing from that EXACT same store front. He was promptly rearrested and sent back immediately without trial. The sisters were afraid that this would be the same case with Hans, but Anna always believed in second chances, no matter how bad the offense was, because in a way, Hans did get their relationship back together, even though he exploited their broken bond for his own personal gain.

It was done at once. Elsa wrote a second version that explained that this letter superseded and replaced the previous letter and gave approval to Hans' visitiation rights, with some reversations to the sincerity of it. The Southern Isles responded almost immediately, saying that they understood Elsa's reversations and that they will expect Hans on the 24 of August. The sisters shared looks of uncertainity. Hopefully, they were doing the right thing but in the end, were they ultimately falling into one of his traps like Anna did, as Hans termed it when he had testifed, hook, line and sinker?

August 24 came too quickly. The sisters were sitting at the docks, waiting for a ship flying Southern Isles colors. "Any ships to arrive today?" Elsa asked the boatmaster.

"Uh", the boatmaster checked the schedule. "A ship from Weselton came earlier this morning, a ship from Kellersburg was supposed to arrive later today. That's about it", he said. Anna looked at Elsa and sure enough, Elsa shared the same thought: The letter was probably a scare tatic, possibily written by the man himself to remind the sisters he was only arrested and could easily return again once his sentence was up. Still, Elsa knew that if a kingdom's ship was going to pass through to Arendelle, a represnetative of that kingdom was supposed to contact Arendelle's boatmaster so he could log it in on the schedule but figured it would be safe to ask anyway.

"Nothing in regards to the Southern Isles?" she asked. The boatmaster checked again.

"Nope, only Weselton and supposedly Kellersburg", he confirmed. However, Anna had a thought. She had spent Elsa's conversation tugging on her sleeve. Finally, she got her sister's attention.

"What, Anna?"

"Elsa, maybe that ship from Kellersburg might be carrying Hans. It makes perfect sense! You approve his visitiation rights, they send him on a ship coming from Kellersburg instead on one of their own ships. Like when we sent him back home, we didn't send him back on his own ship, we sent him back with the French Diginatry!" Elsa looked at Anna and a realization came over her. She turned to the boatmaster.

"Sir, if that ship from Kellersburg does arrive, what's it supposed to be carrying?" The boatmaster checked his list. Again, the kingdom was supposed to log its' inventory in its' notice.

"Um, visitors and represnetatives hoping to meet with you to establish trade agreements and that's about it", he stated. Again, the two sisters shared looks. If the letter said to expect Hans on this day, why didn't they give advance notice to the boatmaster? Needless to say, the ship from Kellersburg came and went with a trade agreement with Arendelle and despite Anna's theory, no Hans among them. The sisters were about to renounce the letter exchange as a scare tatic until Anna saw a ship flying Southern Isles colors. It turns out they DID contact the boatmaster but requested him NOT to log their ship arriving. The letters were legitmate after all. Sure enough, Hans stepped off the ship with no chains and no guards were spotted with him. Well, they DID promise miminal supervision. No words were said, neither one willing to make the first move. They just stared at each other, neither expecting to see the other again. Elsa finally broke it by turning on her heels and tugging Anna's sleeve to get her moving. She motioned to Hans to follow and he did, unsure of what it was her sister had planned for him. When they reached the castle and, by extension, Elsa's throne room, she sat down but Hans remained standing.

"Don't I get a chair?" he asked.

"No, you may not receive a chair. You're still considered a prisoner and a traitor to Arendelle and thus will treated like one", Elsa stated. Hans gulped and knowing he was in position to be making demands or asking anything of the queen , he shut his mouth and surrendered himself to whatever she had decided, even if he found himself hanging by a noose in the public square when she was through with him.

"When I first received notice that you had intended to travel to Arendelle and try to make amends for your crimes, I was a little suspicious at first to the point I said no but my sister convinced me to use your visit as a test to see if your supposed repentance is indeed genuine. Don't think you will just be lazing around, oh no, you will work amongst our staff for 10 days. If you can go 10 days without trying some retry for our throne, you will be considered forgiven and I'll maybe consider filing a pardon but if you try something suspicious that might be connected to your prior crimes, you will be promptly rearrested and sent back WITHOUT leniency. Do I make myself clear?" she asked firmly. Hans nodded. "Good, you will be working in the kitchens as a kitchen boy until I figure you're ready for the big leagues", she nodded. However, the real reason why she placed Hans in the kitchens was more related to the fact she was still suspicious of his motives and this would keep him away from the more important staff members and Anna, although she didn't say that outright to him.

Needless to say, the terms of Hans' new job were very restrictive. He would work with the kitchen staff day in and day out and as a far cry of his royal quarters back home, he would live in the servant quarters. To say Hans himself was unamused at his assignment would be the understatement of the century. He was a prince, not a kitchen boy! He should be waited upon, not waiting on others! However, the first day of his job would be a challenge. A represnetative from Kellersburg was coming to Arendelle to discuss the terms of the trade agreements and the sisters had invited him to dinner where they can discuss them in further detail. The intial meeting had just wrapped up. "Dinner will be at 6:00pm", Anna told the rep.

"I shall be there", the rep stated, knowing Elsa's issues with puntucality.

"Hans!" At that instant, Hans appeared and bowed. Anna had to stiffle a laugh at the fact that the guy who emotionally manipulated her was now serving her. "We're through with the place sets now. Kindly remove them", she stated. Hans was about to respond with a comeback that maybe she should do it herself but then remembered Elsa's threat that he would be jailed on the next boat back if he did anything that could be interpreted as trying a plan B for his plot, proving he hadn't changed at all, he kept his mouth shut and did as he was told, removing the sets without objection. When he left to the kitchen, Anna let out the laugh that threatened to spill when she saw Hans make his appearance. To her, it felt extremely amusing and karmic of his current situation but it was at dinnertime that Weird event no. 1 had occurred. To start with, the soup looked like it had been undercooked and had tasted funny and it had been convientally served to Elsa because Anna and the Kellersburg offical's soups all had been cooked and tasted fine. Elsa decided that after the official left, she would have a chat with Hans and figure out if he was the one who spiked the soup. After closing the trade agreements with Kellersburg, meaning Arendelle had a new trade partner, she summoned Hans to the throne room.

"You sent for me, your majesty?" he inquired.

"Yes. You should know that I prefer my soup at 45 degrees. See that you remember that next time. However, that's not what I wanted to talk to you about. It turns out, in addition to my soup being grossly undercooked, it seems like someone had been in the wine barrels and added a dosage of wine to my soup. Do you have the fortune of knowing who the culprit is?" she asked, glaring at him. Hans gulped but couldn't provide an answer as to who. "Follow me", she motioned for him to follow her to the kitchens. She motioned for the head chef and Hans' superior for the night shift to come forward.

"Yes, your majesty?"

"Tonight, my soup was grossly undercooked and spiked with wine. Was Hans acting a little supicious while your staff was preparing the night's dinner?" she asked. All the head chefs were aware that Hans was on 24/7 employ in the kitchens and thus had him do different things to keep him in line and busy. The head chef of the night couldn't provide an answer.

"I may have sent him to the wine barrels?" one of the chefs spoke up, catching Elsa's attention.

"What?"

"I said I may have sent him to the wine barrels?" the chef spoke up.

"Was he taking a suspiciously long time?" Elsa pressed.

"No. He got the requested amount of barrels and came back", the chef answered. Hans sighed in relief. Elsa, however, wasn't convinced.

"You know Anna isn't allowed to have wine. She was having tea with me. The official from Kellersburg was the only one to have wi-." As soon as she said it, it hit her. The official never received his wine at dinner but Anna & her had received the requested tea. Her eyes drifted over to the wine goblet which was tipped over. The wine goblet was in Hans' station. She was fuming but trying to keep herself under control as to not freeze the kitchen, she turned to the staff. "Thank you for your coorperation. Hans, you're", however, she couldn't bring herself to say that he was being arrested. Besides, how you could arrest somebody for spiking your soup? It was probably just an honest mistake but still, she had to be sure. "Hans, you're coming with me", she finally said.

"No guards?" he inquired.

"No guards. Just you. I need to hear from you what had happened and I want the truth. However, there will be two guards placed at the door and if I ever even HEAR the words deliberately, kill & usurp, a snap of my fingers and you'll be behind bars and jailed on the next boat back to the Isles. Got it?" she asked. Hans gulped but he managed a nod.

"Good", she said and began walking to the throne room, Hans following like a dog following its owner. When they reached the room, a guard opened the door for them. Elsa went to the throne, but the guards held Hans back. "Let him go", her voice rang out. The guards obeyed. Elsa then focused her attention on Hans. The man was almost quivering in fear but he composed himself. "Now, Hans, tell me the truth, did you deliberately spike my soup?" she asked in a tone that seemed a little bit so menacing that Hans nearly had an accident right then and there but he knew that Elsa wasn't going to let the issue go so he'd better tell the truth.

"No, I didn't", he said.

"Are you sure? Because when I looked, the goblet was in your station", Elsa stated. Hans held up his hand to signal.

"Here's what happened. I was making the soup like usual when one of the chefs told me to get the wine barrel for the Kellersburg official. I did and came back to my station to finish preparing your soup. The reason why it was undercooked was because I hadn't actually cooked it when I was called away to get the wine barrel but I heard the signal to get ready. I had the offical's goblet next to yours and as I turned, I must have jutted my station because the next thing I saw was the wine pouring into your soup", he explained. Elsa had been listening closely and noticed he never used the words deliberately, kill and usurp in his speech. This gave her a reason to believe that it WAS an accident and he flat-out stated that the undercooked soup was because he hadn't actually cooked it yet when he was called away. Even better, the night shift was always understaffed so she decided to use this issue as an excuse to beef up the night shift and avoid the problem again at the official dinners.

"I'll see to it that the night shift will be increased similar to the numbers of our morning and afternoon kitchen staff to ensure this doesn't happen again. You get one more chance but if this happens again, you won't be so lucky and you should be lucky I'm treating you with leniency. You're relived for tonight", Elsa said with a wave of her hand, signalling the matter was closed.

Elsa made good on her promise and the night shift on the kitchen staff was beefed up. However, she was still leery about lessening his punishment and began exploring two scenarios if he was lessened: Would he retry for the throne again or would he just act like it didn't exist, which proved he WAS genuinely trying to change? She thought over what she told him that he should be lucky she was being so lenient with him. She thought back to after when she thawed the winter and when the guards retrieved him from the water after Anna punched him into it. The fact that he wasn't resisting or trying to fight back when he was grabbed and thrown into the brig on the French official's ship spoke volumes about how much of a conscience the man actually had: Was he just being savvy or did he actually feel bad for his crimes? Still, she felt like the 24/7 work in the kitchens was a little bit TOO harsh of a punishment for him. Sure there were no further mishaps after the Kellersburg official's visit but keeping someone indoors out of pure spite wasn't good for him and after a chat with Anna, who was for limiting Hans' work hours, she decided to go for it. She summoned Hans to the throne room after he finished preparing breakfast to give him her decision.

"Hans, after careful deliberation with both myself and Anna, I've decided your work hours will be lessened. You will only work the morning and evening shifts but the same rules still stand. Go outside and get some color", she told him. Hans' face burst into a huge grin.

"Thank you, your majesty!" he said. As he left to go outside, Elsa turned to one of her guards.

"Follow him. I want to know what he's about to do and what he's going to do", she stated. The guard nodded and sleuthly followed Hans outside and from what he gathered from his spotting, Hans didn't have seem to show any malicious intent, greeting the villagers of the castle town, where the kingdom's residents lived, and helping others when needed. This reminded the guard of when Hans actively aided the kingdom during the eternal winter crisis, even though that was implied to just build up his pedestal in the residents' eyes, it showed that he had a point in doing so. However, this was where Weird event no. 2 hit as one of the residents reported something missing. Needless to say, Elsa, Anna, and the guards showed up within seconds. "What happened?" Anna asked the shopkeeper.

"Someone broke into my store and stole a batch of chocolate", the shopkeeper said. However, Elsa seemed more concerned with Hans' absence.

"Where's Hans?"

"Who?"

"Hans, one of our kitchen boys."

"Oh, he's over there", the shopkeeper pointed to Hans sitting aganist a fountain, eating something.

"Hans!" Elsa called. Hans shot up from his spot and scurried over.

"Yes, your majesty?"

"Where were you before this nice shopkeeper reported something stolen?"

"I was at the same shopkeeper's, buying a treat. Figured I'd treat myself because I realized I was getting paid without going out and rewarding myself for my hard work", Hans stated.

"Good. Now back to business. The stolen property", Elsa stated. "Anna and I used to play this game. It's called Detective where one of us would hide one of our toys and we would try and find it using our skills as detectives. And, sir, with your help, we will find it." It took 2 hours but eventually, the item was located but the shopkeeper had a stunning revelation as to who the culprit was.

"Your majesty, it was my last customer", he stated, looking in Hans' direction. Hans now knew how Anna felt when he double crossed her, now HE was on the receiving end. Elsa was surprised. She didn't want to believe it but she had to take the shopkeeper's word over Hans. However, she was going to find out the truth but for now, she had to at least act like she was going to punish Hans. She turned to the guard that was tracking him.

"Put him in chains", she said. The guard obeyed and Hans found his wrists chained. She then motioned to the guard and Hans to lean in closely so only they could hear her. "Take him to the throne room. I'll join you guys in a minute", she said in a whisper. Then, as part of the show, she announced, loudly, "Take him to the dungeon!" The guard and Hans, needless to say, played their parts brillantly with Hans trying to fight back but the guard tugging the "prisoner" back towards him. Once Hans was out of earshot, Elsa turned to the shopkeeper. "Did he really steal from you? Because lying to the queen is a federal offense and is punishable by a week in the dungeons."

"Maybe he did and maybe he didn't", the shopkeeper smirked. Elsa caught on almost instantly. She signaled the guard.

"Take him into custody. The store will be closed until further notice", she ordered. It was done at once. The storekeeper was arrested and escorted to the dungeons while Elsa went to the throne room to see about Hans and the guard. A click-clack of heels alerted them to the queen's presence. "Release his chains", Elsa ordered. The guard obeyed and the chains shook off. Hans rubbed his wrists.

"So, what happened?" he asked.

"You might have been framed", Elsa admitted.

"I was thinking the exact same thing. When I first walked in there, he was looking at me funny. It sort of reminded me of how you were looking at me at your coronation and when he said I stole something from his shop after helping us, I got a taste of my own medicine", he said.

"Translation?"

"Meaning I felt how Anna did after I told her no one loved her", he admitted. The way he said it almost as if he REGRETTED saying it.

"Do you regret saying it?" she asked him. What Hans said next surprised her.

"Yes, I did regret saying it. I guess I have a lot to learn about sibling relationships", he sheeplishly admitted. "When you ran off, I tried to stop her from going after you. Why? Because I utlimately couldn't get why after you blew her off at the party, she was still willing to go after you and I was DUMBFOUNDED when she threw herself in front of me to try and stop my sword from coming down on you. If I was in trouble or about to get killed, would one of my brothers come to my aide? Probably not", he added. Elsa was touched by his mini-speech.

After the incident with the shopkeeper, everything returned to normal, as normal as it could get. Hans' 10 day trial period was just about finished and it appeared he was indeed rehabilitated. He made no attempts to get the throne before, during or after those events and went about the tasks assigned to him with cheerful eagerness. Finally, on the tenth day, he was summoned to Elsa's chambers.

"Well, Hans, it appears that you have INDEED changed. Now, it's time to fullfill my end of the bargain", she said, referring to the document in front of her. It was a request to give Hans a clean slate and she signed it, right there in front of him and sent it to the Isles as a petition for his brothers to wipe himself clean and start over. The Southern Isles agreed to pardon Hans and asked if he wanted to, he could take up citizenship in Arendelle as a worker even if it required moving to Arendelle. Needless to say, Hans accepted the post and it was a happy ending for all parties.

 **AN: That's it! That's it! The reason why the story is the way it is is beacause I wanted to do a more realistic version of the "Redemption!Hans" storyline where Hans has to PROVE he's reformed and wants to make amends for his crimes while in Arendelle and it would make sense for Elsa & Anna to be leary at first of him and his intentions, particularly if he was trying to manipulate everyone again, hence why Elsa ordered her guard to follow him to see what he was up to after she lessened his hours. R&R**!


End file.
